Rodd Cayton, Author at City Desk ABQ

Time for fine-tuning: APS to host series of community meetings on ‘right-sizing’

By Rodd Cayton, The Paper. — As enrollment at Albuquerque Public Schools continues to decline, tough decisions need to be made, and the district is asking for community input to guide the process. APS has scheduled a series of community meetings over the next few months to hear from the public. According to an APS […]

APS Superintendent Gabriella Durán Blakey speaks at a press conference on Monday. (Rodd Cayton)

Albuquerque, Education

Keeping it cool: A/C conversion part of APS strategy to fight rising temps

by Rodd Cayton August 4, 2026

By Rodd Cayton It’s hot, and that’s not ideal for learning, Albuquerque Public Schools officials acknowledged Monday. Therefore, the district has been working on a variety of initiatives to keep kids cool. “We are overstaffed for the beginning of the year in terms of having all hands on deck to address any work orders,” Antonio […]

APS receives grant to connect coordinators to instructional teams

Albuquerque Public Schools has been awarded a grant connected to enhancing its community schools program. The $50,000 National Moonshot Grant is for “Extending the Educator Team: Embedding Community in the Future of Learning,” an initiative of Remake Learning, a Pennsylvania-based network “that works to bring together a diverse network of stakeholders to imagine a more […]

Pictured is the proposed site for a new Maverick gas station on the corner of Indian School and Carlisle. This was the former site of a Whole Foods Supermarket.

NM.news

Maverik gas station proposal appears dead after developer misses appeal deadline

by Rodd Cayton April 20, 2026April 21, 2026

By Rodd Cayton, The Paper. — Residents of Netherwood Park, Summit Park and other neighborhoods apparently won’t be getting a Maverik gas station and convenience store as a neighbor – and they seem fine with that. Maverik, which applied to develop the property at Carlisle Boulevard and Indian School Road, did not appeal a denial […]

Where are Albuquerque Public Schools students headed after graduation?

Another class of Albuquerque Public Schools graduates has made the transition to the “real world.” The next step for many includes more education, though some are entering the workforce, joining the armed forces or heading in other directions. Almost 96% of this year’s 12th-grade students took the district’s annual Senior Exit Survey, which gauges the […]

Purloined paintings returning to New Mexico

A pair of paintings stolen decades ago have been found and returned home to New Mexico. Starting Friday, they’ll be on display so the public can view the pieces once thought to be gone forever. The works — “Aspens,” by Victor Higgins and Joseph Henry Sharp’s “Oklahoma Cheyenne” — were stolen from the Harwood Museum […]

From blight to bling

The Nob Hill neighborhood will see a marked improvement in the streetscape after Bernalillo County Commissioners voted to approve financial incentives that will mean the replacement of an abandoned motel with a new boutique hotel. A 112-room Tribute by Marriott Hotel is planned for the property at Central Avenue and Bryn Mawr Drive. Commissioners approved […]

BernCo Commission OKs pre-apprenticeship program

Bernalillo County Commissioners Tuesday decided to launch one arrow they think will hit two targets. The pre-apprenticeship and job internship program commissioners approved is intended to help local young adults get on the pathway to careers in outdoor education and natural resources management while also helping boost the available workforce to meet the county’s hiring […]

Beating the heat and the summer doldrums

The City of Albuquerque is out to fill the calendars and bellies of local youth during the summer break. That plan includes free lunches, full-day programs at community and multi-generational centers, swim lessons and free teen nights. The lunches will be available at parks and community centers citywide. Information on the meal program, including menus […]

Housing and hotel to go before BernCo board

Bernalillo County Commissioners have housing on their minds. Commissioners are considering a pair of bond issues that would pave the way for the construction and renovation of almost 300 new housing units. The West Mesa Ridge A project would consist of 128 units of affordable housing, providing homes for about 448 people, according to the […]